Canon 450D/Rebel XSi Digital Camera Infrared Photography Tests

We test the Canon 450D for its infrared photography capability in this review.
The Canon 450D/Rebel XSi is the latest iteration in this well received digital camera series of models. Starting with the 300D, and going through the 350D and 400D, this has been a hugely popular series for Canon is excellent image quality and other features at a good price.

For this test series we took a 450D out into the field with a tripod, cable release and a Hoya R-72 infrared filter. The images below illustrate the range of false color you can get with this camera. Unfortunately the hot filter in the camera is quite strong, and so your full sun exposures lie in the 30 seconds at f4 and 100ISO area. With an R-72 filter and this camera there is roughly a two stop exposure difference between the red channel and the green/blue channels.

Default Adobe ACR version

After a Hue adjustment

After doing levels individually on each channel

Below we have 100% sections of the center of the image at varying ISO.100ISO

200ISO

400ISO

800ISO

1600ISO

You can see that noise is quite well controlled in this camera and is very useable up to 1600ISO.

To further help you in making your shooting decisions with this camera, I’ve included below 100% sections for the red and green channels at three ISO settings.

100ISORed

Green

400ISORed

Green

1600ISORed

Green

From the three shots below you can see that you can get quite different renderings between the three channels if you are seeking a monochrome image. All work, it is a question of which you prefer.

Red

Green

Blue

The 450D is an excellent camera for infrared shooting. Unfortunately the Live View does not work in infrared, which is a shame. But apart from t
his the 450D works well in infrared. If you have a 450D, give infrared shooting a go.

My pictures are coming up black, does this mean my exposures aren’t long enough? Do I have to set it manually? I got the impression my camera would set the shutter speed to that required for the correct exposure, is this wrong? You’d recommend ISO 100, f4, 30s as a starting point?
Thanks in advance
Claire

Interesting. I have the Xsi and have difficulties pulling off a good IR photo – shooting in RAW. I’ve read other articles that say this camera doesn’t shoot well in IR. I’m using a 720nm filter but it’s not a Hoya, as they are a little too pricey for me. Maybe my filter is the problem? Will play around with it some more.

The key is lots of exposure. With a 720nm filter the red color channel will get much more exposure than the green and blue, so expect very red images that will need to be converted to mono in Photoshop, probably just using the Red channel. Also make sure you cover the eyepiece to avoid light leakage. I haven’t seen this on a Canon, but you never know. Use manual exposure, 30 seconds, widest aperture and 100ISO as a starting point and adjust from there.